How Do I Balance My Ceiling Fan?

Ceiling fans help circulate the air in a room, keeping it comfortable so you don’t have to rely so much on your primary heating/cooling system, reducing your energy costs in the process. And like all machines with moving parts and extended use, ceiling fans will eventually wear, come loose and begin to wobble. A ceiling fan with wobbling blades is more than just a visual distraction. It can also be dangerous for anyone standing underneath it or even close to it. Wobbling blades could also cause damage to the motor’s bearings and bushings, resulting in an annoying and unnecessary fan noise. There are a few things that can cause your ceiling fan to wobble. For example, you may have a loose junction box, mounting hardware or blade holders. Another reason your ceiling fan is wobbling could be that the blades are warpedor the blade holders are bent. Or, your blades may be unbalanced.

To stop your ceiling fan from wobbling, you’ll need to perform some diagnostics to determine the cause. Most people try to balance their ceiling fans first with a balancing kit when their fans start to wobble, only to find out that they can’t be balanced because of another issue or combination of issues. Make sure your ceiling fan is turned off and then check the following:

Junction Box Is Secure—Wiggle the junction box to see if it is loose. If it is secured, you should not be able to move the junction box at all. If it’s loose, you’ll need to reinforce it. You can do so by attaching a piece of 2×4 lumber to the joists or using an expandable fan brace.

Screws and Hardware Are Tight—Examine your ceiling fan to ensure that all the screws and other hardware are attached tightly. If any are loose, tighten them to stop your ceiling fan from wobbling (and to prevent blades from flying off).

Blades and Holders Aren’t Warped—If you think your ceiling fan’s blades are warped or the blade holders are bent, remove them and line them up. It should be easy to tell just by looking at them whether one or more of these pieces is distorted and causing your fan to wobble. If they are, replacement parts may be available. Contact us or give us a call and we’ll see if we can help.

Steps for Balancing Your Ceiling Fan

If your fan is still wobbling after you’ve checked to make sure everything is tight, secure and that the blades and holders are in good shape, then it could be that one or more of your blades are not the same weight as the others and you’ll need to balance the weight using a balancing kit. You can purchase a ceiling fan balancing kit at your local home improvement hardware store. Your balancing kit should come with a weighted clip (used to locate the unbalanced blades) and lead weights. To balance your ceiling fan, you’ll need to follow the following steps:

Step 1—Run your ceiling fan to determine which setting causes it to wobble most (it’s usually the highest speed).

Step 2—Before using the balancing kit, switch the positions of two adjacent blades to see if this solves the problem. If the wobbling continues, switch the blades back to their original positions and move on to the next step.

Step 3—Attach the weighted clip to the top of one of the blades, centered along the leading edge. Turn your fan on at the highest speed and see whether the weight made the wobble less noticeable or worse. Stop the fan and move the clip to the next blade, repeating this process for each until you determine which blade could benefit from additional weight.

Step 4—Attach the weighted clip to the blade where you noticed the least wobble and move it around until you’ve found the position where your ceiling fan runs best.

Step 5—Attach one of the lead weights to the blade by peeling the protective paper off the adhesive and sticking it to the top adjacent to the clip.

Step 6—Remove the weighted clip and start the fan, repeating this process until the wobbling stops completely.

At Hansen Wholesale, we’re ceiling fan experts and assist you with a variety of needs. Whether you need help balancing a fan or finding a new one, we’re here to help. Contact us today or give us a call at 1-800-201-1193 to talk to an expert.